SHOP
NEWS
CAREER
GEAR
MANDATORY FUN
VOICES

Here Are The Best And Worst States For Military Retirees

Sarah Sicard
May 22, 2017 at 12:10 PM Transition
Navy photo

Retiring from the military presents a whole new set of challenges for service members between finding a second career, considering furthering education, and taking care of a family. One aspect of retirement that is often overlooked is where service members should live after the military, which can be one of the most important decisions service members make about their future.

WalletHub, a site that offers financial tools and advice, just released its annual ranking of the best and worst states for military retirees, and with it, a whole slew of findings that veterans should consider when selecting a place to live, like which ones have the best healthcare, most jobs, and most affordable housing. After all, once retired, veterans can choose where to live, instead of waiting for orders.

For instance, Republican states are more friendly to veterans than Democratic ones, according to WalletHub. Additionally, Indiana, New Hampshire, and Vermont were found to have the most job opportunities for veterans.

To determine the best and worst states for military retirement, WalletHub’s analysts compared all 50 states and Washington, D.C., across three dimensions: Economic environment, quality of life, and health care.

Source: WalletHub

The top five states:

  • Florida

  • Montana

  • New Hampshire

  • Wyoming

  • South Carolina

The five worst states:

  • Utah

  • North Carolina

  • Rhode Island

  • New Jersey

  • Washington, D.C.

  • To get more granular, these rankings were also influenced by the size of the veteran population in each state, the number of Veterans Affairs facilities, job opportunities for veterans, and housing affordability.

    For more information on the rankings, visit WalletHub.com.

military retirement retirement va veterans affairs wallethub
the greatest generation

A D-Day veteran faced an unattended burial. 500 strangers showed up to honor his service

Unsung Heroes
www.youtube.com

D-Day veteran James McCue died a hero. About 500 strangers made sure of it.

"It's beautiful," Army Sgt. Pete Rooney said of the crowd that gathered in the cold and stood on the snow Thursday during McCue's burial. "I wish it happened for every veteran's funeral."

Read More Show Less
unsung heroes news d-day history unattended veterans the greatest generation
border wall

Trump: $6.1 billion in DoD money going to border wall wasn’t for anything that seemed ‘too important to me’

news
content.jwplatform.com

President Donald Trump claims the $6.1 billion from the Defense Department's budget that he will now spend on his border wall was not going to be used for anything "important."

Trump announced on Friday that he was declaring a national emergency, allowing him to tap into military funding to help pay for barriers along the U.S.-Mexico border.

Read More Show Less
president donald trump mexico military construction border wall military spending defense budget u.s.-mexico border donald j. trump politics policy news
in the navy

That time Navy submarines steamed up the Mississippi River for Mardi Gras

History

Every once in a while, we run across a photo in The Times-Picayune archives that's so striking that it begs a simple question: "What in the name of Momus Alexander Morgus is going on in this New Orleans photograph?" When we do, we've decided, we're going to share it — and to attempt to answer that question.

Read More Show Less
u.s. navy history mardi gras new orleans mississippi river louisiana in the navy
syria withdrawal

CENTCOM commander Gen. Votel recommends arming, aiding Syrian fighters after pullout

news
Members of the Syrian Democratic Forces control the monitor of their drone at their advanced position, during the fighting with Islamic State's fighters in Nazlat Shahada, a district of Raqqa. (Reuters/Zohra Bensemra)

MUSCAT (Reuters) - The United States should keep arming and aiding the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) following the planned U.S. withdrawal from Syria, provided the group keeps up the pressure on Islamic State, a senior U.S. general told Reuters on Friday.

Read More Show Less
syria withdrawal syria isis sdf syrian democratic forces news
powered armor

SOCOM's Iron Man suit is officially dead

Military Tech
content.jwplatform.com

Long before Tony Stark took a load of shrapnel to the chest in a distant war zone, science fiction legend Robert Heinlein gave America the most visceral description of powered armor for the warfighter of the future. Forget the spines of extra-lethal weaponry, the heads-up display, and even the augmented strength of an Iron Man suit — the real genius, Heinlein wrote in Starship Troopers, "is that you don't have to control the suit; you just wear it, like your clothes, like skin."

"Any sort of ship you have to learn to pilot; it takes a long time, a new full set of reflexes, a different and artificial way of thinking," explains Johnny Rico. "Spaceships are for acrobats who are also mathematicians. But a suit, you just wear."

First introduced in 2013, U.S. Special Operations Command's Tactical Assault Light Operator Suit (TALOS) purported to offer this capability as America's first stab at militarized powered armor. And while SOCOM initially promised a veritable Iron Man-style tactical armor by 2018, a Navy spokesman told Task & Purpose the much-hyped exoskeleton will likely never get off the launch pad.

"The prototype itself is not currently suitable for operation in a close combat environment," SOCOM spokesman Navy Lt. Phillip Chitty told Task & Purpose, adding that JATF-TALOS has no plans for an external demonstration this year. "There is still no intent to field the TALOS Mk 5 combat suit prototype."

Read More Show Less
news miliitary tech tactical assault light operator suit u.s. special operations command talos exoskeletons powered armor iron man starship troopers